An Iberia Airbus A330-200 outbound to Havana, Cuba made a return to Madrid, Spain as a result of a birdstrike on 13 October 2024.
Iberia flight IB6621, operated by an Airbus A330-200, had departed from runway 36L Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD).
Iberia IB6621 Madrid-Havana
Following its departure, the flight had climbed through FL330 and was on the outbound track for Havana José Martí International Airport (HAV).
With the aircraft over the Atlantic Ocean to the west of Portugal, flight crew reported experiencing an engine issue. As a result, a return to the origin airport at Madrid was initiated. The flight subsequently landed at Madrid–Barajas Airport approximately 2.5 hours after its initial departure.
According to the online source Aviation Herald, a passenger on board the flight reported that a flight deck announcement explained that the aircraft had sustained a birdstrike.
There was no clarification given with regards to exactly when the birdstrike occurred. Passengers were subsequently transferred to an alternate flight to the destination of Havana.
Flight Details
Flight data shows that flight IB6621 had made a departure out of Madrid at 1320 local time on 13 October.
Following departure, the flight had intercepted track and set course normally and was on climbed through flight level FL330 (33,000 feet) when the decision to return was made.
The climb was then terminated and flight crew descended the aircraft to FL280 for the return to Madrid.
The aircraft conducting the IB6621 service to Havana was an Airbus A330-200, registered EC-MOU. This is a 7.6-year-old wide-body aircraft belonging to the carrier Iberia. It has been in operational service with the airline since its initial delivery from the factory in March 2017.
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